Evening Brief: Feds to ban over 1,500 guns following mass shooting

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The Lead

Less than two weeks after the deadliest mass shooting in Canada’s history, more than 1,500 types of guns will be banned.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the new restrictions earlier today. It was only 12 days ago that a gunman in Nova Scotia ended the lives of more than 22 victims using multiple guns in a more than half-day-long killing spree across the Maritime province.

“Families deserve more than thoughts and prayers, Canadians deserve more than thoughts and prayers,” Trudeau said. “In the last election we committed to banning assault-style weapons and putting in place a program to buy back these weapons,” the prime minister continued in French.

The federal cabinet is permitted through the Criminal Code to make specific gun models illegal by defining them as a “prohibited firearm” and “prohibited device.” It issued the new restrictions in Friday’s edition of the Canada Gazette, which new federal regulations must be published in to come into force.

The objective of the ban, as stated in the Gazette, is to prohibit access to weapons based on their “capability of inflicting significant harm to Canadians,” which is characterized by their design.

The ban makes it illegal to import, sell or use the listed weapons in Canada. Owners of the guns – including sniper rifles, grenade launchers, and rifle models including M16, AR-15 and M4 carbine – can continue to store them and transport them, “under limited circumstances,” according to a press release from the Prime Minister’s Office.

Premier François Legault’s intention to reopen Quebec’s primary schools, retail businesses, construction and manufacturing later this month has been met with skepticism.

Quebec, with about 23 per cent of Canada’s population, has more than 50 per cent of COVID-19 cases and more than half the country’s pandemic deaths. Most infections and deaths in Quebec have been in the Montreal region, which accounts for about half the province’s 8.5-million population.

But as Horacio Arruda, Quebec’s public health director, explained on Friday, the plan could still be called off — and if it does go ahead, it will be under strict controls by public health officials.

“We open, we measure, we open, we measure,” Arruda said, explaining what would happen in primary schools. If there is an outbreak, “we stop,” he added.

MPs of all stripes are awaiting details from the federal government on plans to help Canadians access affordable internet during the COVID-19 pandemic.

NDP Brain Masse said the Liberals have been quiet on the issue despite the fact that so many government and education services have moved online.

“Internet service and support as an essential service has changed from before and it’s now become the primary way to stay communicated, educated, and do businesses in Canada,” he said in an interview with iPolitics on Friday.

The Bank of Canada’s former senior deputy governor, Tiff Macklem, will replace Stephen Poloz next month as the central bank’s new head, Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced on Friday.

Macklem last served the bank in his senior deputy role from 2010 to 2014, and has since been the dean of the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management. He was also previously the associate deputy minister of finance from 2007 to 2010 as well as Canada’s representative at the G7, G20 and Financial Stability Board.

As Brazil emerges as Latin America’s coronavirus epicenter, the city of Manaus — which has a population of roughly 2 million people — is running out of coffins, with the national funeral home association pleading for an urgent airlift of caskets from Sao Paulo. The city has been overwhelmed with fatalities, partly due to its role as a hub of medical services for residents of remote Amazon communities. (Associated Press)

On the flip side, Beijing has reopened its parks and museums after months of closure due to the coronavirus. The re-opened sites include the ancient Forbidden City, but visitors at the latter site will be capped at 5,000-per-day for now — a steep adjustment from the 80,000 the Forbidden City usually accommodates. (Associated Press)

In the U.S., Democratic presidential hopeful Joseph Biden Jr. denied an allegation of sexual assault by former Senate aid Tara Reade, saying the incident “never happened.” Biden called on the National Archives to release any existing complaint related to the allegation — while continuing to oppose requests to release his Senate papers, arguing that they did not contain personnel records. (The New York Times)

London’s High Court today threw out part of a claim brought by Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, against a tabloid newspaper for breaching her privacy, ruling that it had not acted dishonestly. (Reuters)

And diplomatic tensions have flared once again between Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, on the subject of Libya. The UAE’s ministry of foreign affairs this week expressed concern over Turkish interference in Libya through the allged deployment of fighters and smuggling of arms; in response, Turkey’s foreign ministry spokesperson accused the UAE of pursuing “destructive” and “two-faced” policies in the region. (Al Jazeera)